An investor beat a string of first home buyers, some with help from family, for a Bellevue Hill apartment that sold for $1,125,000 at auction on Saturday.
The two-bedroom unit at 15/165 Victoria Road had been listed with a price guide of $925,000.
It was one of 696 auctions scheduled in Sydney on Saturday. By evening, Domain Group recorded a preliminary auction clearance rate of 69.4 per cent from 415 reported results, while 79 auctions were withdrawn. Withdrawn auctions are counted as unsold properties when calculating the clearance rate.
Seven parties registered to bid on the renovated art deco home, which is set on the top floor of its block.
Bidding began at $890,000 and rose as five of the bidders, mostly first home buyers, made offers.
PPD Real Estate selling agent Sean Poche said it was a competitive auction, but an investor ultimately beat a first home buyer who was being assisted by her mum. He said the reserve was in line with the guide, which was $875,000 at the start of the campaign before being adjusted higher.
He said he had four auctions in the last four weeks, one of which had 10 registered bidders, one five and another seven. There were not many homes for sale mid-winter, compared to the number of buyers looking, he said.
“There is absolutely a big pool of first home buyers and investors looking to buy those entry-level apartments,” he said.
“A lot of the first home buyers are accompanied by their parents.
“I am sure that somehow mitigates or eases the higher costs.”
He believed the result showed the market was in a good state for sellers.
“This wasn’t an outlier. Basically it has been the norm.”
Auctioneer Clarence White of Menck White Auctioneers called the auction and said the bidding was competitive, but some buyers tried to break it down into smaller increments that he declined to take.
Buyers had broadly shown signs of caution, but the entry-level market had been less affected by higher mortgage costs, he said.
“In general it has been pretty tentative… Units are doing a little bit better compared to some of the buyers that were spending $3 million, $4 million.”
Elsewhere, a Rockdale family home sold for $1,682,000 to an owner-occupier relocating from Penshurst.
The charming three-bedroom house at 18 Bestic Street, complete with a white picket fence, had been listed with a price guide of $1.45 million.
Eleven parties registered to bid and five made offers. Bidding kicked off at $1.4 million and despite a slow start, it soon picked up as buyers made $50,000 bids.
Bidding passed the $1.6 million reserve and pushed higher, said Ray White selling agent Nicholas Economos.
A lady relocating from a nearby suburb beat upsizers from across the east, inner west and locally.
“There are still lots of buyers out there, there is still a lot of buyer confidence. I feel like things might start to change soon, but I haven’t seen it yet,” Economos said.
He said buyers who were in the market now were comfortable with the level of interest rates, given they had been at the same level for some time.
In Annandale, a renovated terrace home is still available after passing in at auction.
The three-bedroom home at 79 Booth Street is tenanted until September next year, which tempered the enthusiasm from buyers, BresicWhitney Balmain selling agent Brandon Nguyen said.
Buyers were reluctant to raise their hands and the property passed in on a vendor bid of $1.9 million. An investor offered $1.9 million after auction and negotiations were ongoing, he said.
“The market still feels quite strong,” he said. “It feels there are a lot more investors coming back in. The rental market still feels pretty strong as well.”